Les Grands Carmes de Simone 2011

This is the most famous château in the Palette appellation, where the Rougier family has been shaping its style for nearly two centuries. The 25 hectares of vineyards are located at an altitude of about 200 meters, on a north-facing slope that shields them from the intense sun and the mistral. But the estate’s true treasure is undoubtedly its many very old vines, carefully tended through sustainable viticulture, for which official organic certification has been pending since 2018. The wine, aged in vaulted cellars carved into the rock by the Grand Carmelite monks of Aix in the 16th century, is often underestimated in its youth. After a few years of aging, all the vintages—including the rosés—reveal admirable complexity and depth. It is therefore best to keep the bottles in the cellar for a while, even if the impatient among us might disagree.

From the top of the hillsides at Château Simone, a scene straight out of a Cézanne painting unfolds: one can admire the century-old vines clinging to the Langesse limestone, opening up to the north toward Mount Sainte-Victoire. “La Simone,” as the Rougier family likes to call it, is undoubtedly the most famous wine among connoisseurs of great Mediterranean white wines. Indeed, René and Jean-François Rougier craft this white wine without resorting to technical artifice, resulting in a wine of incredible character, balance, and richness. One of the secrets lies in the slow pressing and twenty months of aging in large oak casks, followed by barrel aging. It is also the product of an 8-hectare plot planted with several grape varieties, primarily Clairette (with 2% Muscat that makes all the difference!), which are harvested and blended during winemaking. The rosé, Simone’s other standout, is always vibrant in color, with intense fruitiness. On the palate, it is highly concentrated and shows aging potential. The red has now reached the caliber of certain great wines from the southern Rhône Valley. The Grenache and Mourvèdre lend it a character defined by a higher level of ripeness and a more developed mid-palate than in previous vintages.